Subscribers to digital services often access their services through mobile devices. An authentication process is generally necessary to authenticate a subscriber before authorizing access to any subscribed services. In some instances, authentication can be accomplished by or in association with an authentication process of the mobile access network, such as accomplished in a 3G or LTE network.
It is common for mobile devices to move one type of communication network to another, for example from a 3G or LTE network (mobility network) to a Wi-Fi network. Each movement to a different communication network typically requires that an authentication procedure be performed using the mobile device on that communication network.
By way of example, authentication of a mobile cellular subscriber moving to a Wi-Fi access network can include an authentication request sent from the mobile device to a WiFi Access Point (AP). The authorization request is forwarded from the AP to a Trusted Wireless access point AAA Proxy (TWAP) and from there to a Consolidated Network Repository (CNR), to allow for authentication of the subscriber and/or the subscriber device. Upon authentication, the CNR pushes authenticated subscriber credentials back to TWAP, then to the AP, and finally to the mobile device. A similar process may be necessary with each transition of the same subscriber and/or subscriber device to an alternative access network.